1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally directed to heating and cooking elements and means for automatically controlling their operation. More specifically, the present invention is directed to heating assemblies having an selective heating geometry with automatic on/off control.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Oven top and stove type heating elements have been traditionally arranged in a group about a planar heating surface. Most commonly, these elements have included electric resistor type heating elements or natural gas heating elements arranged in groups of two or four about a cooking surface. These elements are generally manually actuated between an on/off position and include incremental temperature controls operable by the operator via a switch situated on or about the cooking surface.
The configuration, placement and operation of such traditional heating and cooking elements, however, has a number of disadvantages. One such disadvantage is the limitation on the number of cooking vessels which may be located atop the cooking surface at any one time. In conventional embodiments, the number of vessels, e.g. pots, cannot exceed the number of heating elements and thus require that large meals involving cooking pots in excess of the number of heating elements be completed in a staggered fashion.
Furthermore, the geometry of conventional heating elements often present a handicap to the user since the heating element or burner is often too small and sometimes too large for a given cooking vessel, thereby resulting in a uneven or incomplete heating in the instance of a small burner, or in a waste of energy when the burner is overly large. Additionally, conventional heating elements are most often circular in configuration, thus restricting their ready adaptation to square or elongated cooking vessels.
Finally, traditional heating and cooking elements and the ranges or cooktops into which they are incorporated do not utilize any procedures to avoid energy waste when not in use. Accordingly, it is possible for a burner to remain "on" long after the cooking vessel is removed, thereby presenting a fire hazard. Moreover, oftentimes the user incorrectly actuates a given heating element, again resulting in energy waste and prolonging the cooking process.